"END" 2003 Obituary

ENDICOTT o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2003-10-10 published
William W.
SMALL
By John SMALL and Stephen
ENDICOTT, page A24
Husband, father, grandfather, athlete, academic, administrator,
sinophile, Christian. Born September 5, 1917, in Chengdu, China.
Died February 4, 2003, in Alliston, Ontario of a heart attack,
aged 85.
Bill was born to United Church of Canada missionaries in Western
China, in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province. Although
he left China at the age of 16, he later returned to work there
for another 13 years. Even after his final return to Canada in
1952, China was never far from his thoughts.
Bill earned his B.A. in business administration at the University
of Toronto and his M.A. from Columbia University in New York
City. Then he was seconded by the United Church to the West China
Union University, he held the position of bursar until the Communist
government in China moved into Sichuan in 1950. Under the new
dispensation, foreigners were not permitted to handle institutional
funds. But, liked and respected by students, colleagues and local
authorities, Bill was invited to remain with the university as
a professor of English and athletics. Luckily he was well-qualified,
having starred on the U of T's senior soccer and tennis teams.
He had also excelled at track and field in high school and had
an uncanny ability with golf acquired as a caddy in Vancouver.
Returning to Toronto in 1952 without influential contacts or
job prospects, Bill soon found employment in the U of T's bursar's
office. Intrigued by the challenge posed by the establishment
of a new institution, he moved to the just-established York University,
and eventually became its vice-president of administration. The
late 1960s and early 1970s were turbulent years on campuses across
North America; Bill played a crucial role in helping to guide
York through its share of crises. While handling his financial
duties, he expressed his continuing attachment to China by teaching
courses in Chinese cultural history.
Bill was closely involved in the creation and operation of the
Canada China Friendship Society at both the national and local
levels, and for years served as its president. It was a rare
visiting Chinese personality or delegation that did not benefit
from Bill's Friendship and hospitality.
He spoke Chinese fluently, with a decided Sichuanese accent.
He was also a dab hand at Chinese cooking and liked nothing better
than to whip up delicious mapo tofu at short notice. By visiting
China at regular intervals, he maintained his numerous Friendships
and kept up-to-date with China's progress.
He was a devoted family man; he and his first wife, Betty, who
accompanied and supported him in China, raised three charming
daughters. They, in due course, provided him with eight grandchildren
on whom he doted. When Betty was dying of cancer at the very
time crises at York University were demanding his attention,
Bill showed remarkable stamina and integrity.
He later married Shirley Jane
ENDICOTT, uniting two long-time
China missionary families and acquiring two more children and
their offspring.
After retirement, Bill devoted much time and energy to Trinity-St.
Paul's United Church in Toronto. He also conducted a survey of
United Church educational institutions across Canada, and contributed
his knowledge and expertise to the Donner and Max Bell Foundations.
Bill died on February 4, doing what he loved to do: playing tennis,
a game at which he excelled and to which he devoted the same
passion and energy he gave to everything he undertook. On August
11, 2003, to honour Bill's contributions to York University and
Canada-China relations, York dedicated a new administration and
computing commons building: the William Small Centre.
John SMALL and Stephen
ENDICOTT are Bill's brother and brother-in-law.